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  3. A sharply divided federal appeals court on Monday exposed Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to billions of dollars in legal damages when it r

A sharply divided federal appeals court on Monday exposed Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to billions of dollars in legal damages when it r

admin2022-08-27  33
问题     A sharply divided federal appeals court on Monday exposed Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to billions of dollars in legal damages when it ruled a massive lawsuit alleging gender discrimination over pay for female workers can go to trial.
    The Court said the world’s largest private employer will have to face charges that it pays women less than men for the same jobs and that female employees receive fewer promotions and have to wait longer for those promotions than male counterparts.
    Wal-Mart successfully convinced the court that women who allege discrimination should file individual lawsuits. Wal-Mart employs 2.1 million workers in 8,000 stores worldwide and argued that the conventional rules of class action suits should not apply because each outlet operates as an independent business. Since it doesn’t have a company-wide policy of discrimination, Wal-Mart argued that women alleging gender bias should file individual lawsuits against individual stores.
    The ruling was a "big black eye for Wal-Mart, and it’s not going to heal anytime in the near future," said retail consultant Burt P. Flickinger. Flickinger said the ruling could turn off women shoppers—the company’s critical base—at a time it faces increased pressure from a host of competitors, ranging from Kroger to J.C. Penney.
    Wal-Mart’s fourth-quarter results, announced in February, showed that total sales at its US Wal-Mart stores fell for the first time since the company went public in 1969. The company also reported its third consecutive quarter of declines in sales at stores opened at least a year. Sales at stores opened at least a year are considered a key indicator of a retailer’s health.
    Wal-Mart’s top lawyer Jeff Gearhart said the company disagreed with the ruling and was considering its next step, which could include an appeal to the US Supreme Court.
    "We do not believe the claims alleged by the six individuals who brought this suit are representative of the experiences of our female associates," said Gearhart, an executive vice president. "Wal-Mart is an excellent place for women to work and fosters female leadership among our associates and in the larger business world."
    Unions and other critics have long complained that Wal-Mart’s workplace practices needed improvement, especially in the areas of diversity and career advancement. The company employs 1.4 million workers in the United States and the unions claim the company’s labor practices are widely followed.
    Wal-Mart responded to the pressure last year at its annual shareholders’ meeting by announcing a plan to address the issue of promoting women, creating a "global council" comprised of 14 Wal-Mart female executives.
    "We are proud of the strides we have made to advance and support our female associates and have been recognized for our efforts to advance women through a number of awards and accolades (荣誉)," Gearhart said.
What had happened to Wal-Mart?
选项 A、A court was sharply divided on the issue of Wal-Mart issue.
B、Wal-Mart was the largest private employer hiring women.
C、Wal-Mart suffered a great loss after its failure in a lawsuit.
D、It was accused of discrimination against female workers.
答案D
解析 因为本文通篇都在讲沃尔玛，所以题干中没有可用于定位的明确信息词。因此最好逐一查看选项。题干提问本文的主题，而选项A“法庭对沃尔玛案件的意见出现了严重分歧”只是这一主题的一个小插曲，不是最本质的事件，所以错误。选项B“沃尔玛在一起诉讼案件中失败以后遭受了重大的损失”也只是本话题的一个方面，而不是核心内容，故也不正确。虽然沃尔玛确实是全球最大的私人雇主，但是文中并没有提到它是雇用女性员工的最大私人雇主，而且选项C也没有很好地概括文章主题，因而排除C。选项D“沃尔玛被指控歧视女性员工”准确地概括了本文的主要内容，所以本题选D。
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